At the center of the earth is the Valley of Eden. Untouched by the world above, the Valley has never known climate change. No meteor has destroyed its great species and fire has never burned its branches. The only men to walk it's floor was the writer of the journal where I read of the Valley first, and myself.At the center of the Earth is a valley I discovered, after becoming lost in a crystal mine in South America. After many days of walking in the darkness, I came upon a thin crack in the earth. I could see it stretched many miles, the walls of melted obsidian, and let in the sunlight from far above. The reflections from the glossy surfaces were ghostly. Setting a piton in the stone, I let out all the rope I had with me. As I descended the crack, a threshold opened beneath, and my breathe caught in my throat.
To my great surprise, I hung above an entire world. A verdant green valley stretched for many miles. I could see dark jungles of trees, wild with strange animals noises. On each side were craggy mountain ranges, melting into the stone walls that stretched to the ceiling above where I hung. The center of the great roof was hollow, a shaft of unimaginable width stretching up to the blue skies of my home. I could see now that I hung near the wall, in one crack of many, radiating from the Central Shaft.
We both moved among its incredible inhabitants, and saw many sights. Beasts from the beginnings of the Earth were there. The Terrible Lizards made the ground tremble. I saw Earth Spirits and Water Spirits dance. Tribes of intelligent creatures welcomed me into their camps, and others tried to devour me as sacrifice. It will take a long time to speak of them all, and the strife that eventually destroyed the Garden forever.
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Valley of Eden is a collaborative storytelling game.
That is the basic background. The rest if up to you and me.
The roles you'll be playing, and the ultimate goal of the game is open to imagination.
A few examples: a tribe of intelligent protohumans, an ancient Elemental or a surviving Dinosaur(s) from long ago.
The Valley is totally unique, so anything is really up for grabs.
(that about sums it up)Menolly wrote: So I am guessing we are the natives of the Valley, and that you as game master are the lone explorer coming across us? And that the game is free enough for us to be any sort of ancient being, or even group of beings, that would interact with you and eventually with each other?
Plot Points (PPs) are earned each turn, and as a reward for achieving your goals in the game.
Plot Points are spent to create/do/inspire/bless/et cetera. These are for progressing the Plot of the game.
You can do almost anything with PP's.
Simple actions like changing a characters physical aspects or investing an object with power are examples.
But also other concepts like deus ex machina can be manipulated with PP's.
Actions that change the Plot more drastically will require more PP's than those which have simpler results.
But the possibilities are limited only to your imagination.
The game progresses by turns, each turn consisting of a Public and Private submission.
The submissions can be in whatever format you want, as short or as long as you want.
In Valley, you take some initiative in the making the story happen.
I only approve and suggest changes to keep things in relative balance,
in addition to the events I write to each player in their Turn Result.
Feel free to post stories to elaborate on any world-building details of your part of the Valley,
but try to stay away from things that move Plot. Save those for PPs.
Above all, remember this is your story! Have fun with it!
Together the Public/Private Turn submissions and spending Plot Points (in the submissions) is how you realize your goals for the Plot.
What is the Plot? That's each up to you, and to a lesser degree, me. I have a few ideas for my own plans, but what you want with the game is how you play.
If you need a hand with Plot, PM me and we'll think of one.
(I have a very active imagination, so a little daydreaming is usually enough. )
As soon as this thread is stickied (or moved to a new subforum) registration can begin. PM me, we'll work out the details, and I will add you to the Registry.
Have fun!